security blanket

American  

noun

1. a blanket or other familiar item carried especially by a young child to provide reassurance and a feeling of psychological security.

2. someone or something that gives a person a sense of protection or a feeling of security.

   His wealthy uncle is his security blanket.

---

security blanket British  

noun

1. a policy of temporary secrecy by police or those in charge of security, in order to protect a person, place, etc, threatened with danger, from further risk

2. a baby's blanket, soft toy, etc, to which a baby or young child becomes very attached, using it as a comforter

3. informal anything used or thought of as providing reassurance

---

security blanket Idioms  

1. Something that dispels anxiety, as in I always carry my appointments calendar; it's my security blanket. This colloquial term, dating from about 1960, was at first (and still is) used for the blanket or toy or other object held by a young child to reduce anxiety.

---

Etymology

Origin of security blanket

First recorded in 1965–70

Example Sentences

When I was very small, I had, as many children do, a security blanket known as “Blankie.”

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 20, 2026

That uniformity is a security blanket for Joy Yip, a 47-year-old real-estate agent who recently visited a Costco near Tokyo.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 22, 2026

While premiums have gone up in recent years, and coverage maxes out at $250,000, the program still constitutes a security blanket on Florida’s Gulf Coast, where coverage rates are high.

From Slate • Oct. 9, 2024

One of the game’s best route runners, the dependable Cooper is a security blanket for Watson and P.J.

From Washington Times • Nov. 2, 2023

He crushed the cloth under his fingers like a security blanket.

From "Boy 2.0" by Tracey Baptiste